Category Archives: Stakeholder Engagement

To help prepare the next generation of students, researchers, educators and practitioners, I chose to volunteer my time with Boston University’s Campaign: Choose to Be Great! While my contribution was, albeit very small, in comparison to the over $1 Billion that was raised by generous alumni, parents and well-wishers, it was nonetheless good to be able to give back to the University. The faculty and students thanked donors, like me, by inviting us to a donor appreciation event.

2018 Boston University Donor Appreciation Event

I’ve always wanted to watch a NBA game, but with the high cost of tickets and my lack of understanding for the game of basketball, I was pleased to be able to watch a Division 1 Men’s Collegiate Basketball game between Boston University and the U.S. Naval Academy. What made attending this event special was knowing that former advisors, classmates and colleagues who were collegiate basketball players would have also enjoyed being at the game. There were many benefits for Boston University as a means of showcasing itself and saying thank you to donors thereby engaging in positive educational stewardship.

Through my volunteer work both in micro and macro settings, I have found that appreciation of those who do good work can improve the state of the world. Donors have different motivations for getting involved in supporting a cause therefore from a fundraiser’s perspective it is helpful to uncover the “why give?” After returning home from the event, I watched a TED Talk by Darryl Byrd about being an “aimless volunteer” who spread himself too thin with time and energy. He then decided to focus his volunteer work to get a better Return on Investment (ROI) for his volunteering. Whether volunteering time, advocating for a cause or writing checks, they all help advance a nonprofit’s mission. As we get older, the question becomes, which nonprofit matters to you the most?

In North America and Western Europe, media outlets, independent journalists and bloggers often display photos of children, adolescents and young adults in the developing world who are engaged in sport for development and peace activities. The motives behind such photos often vary from portraying a positive image of the media outlet to indirect fundraising for donor organizations. How do the subjects, or more specifically persons in the photographs benefit? This question prompted me to self-reflect about how to apply learnings from participating in international competitions, sport tournaments and conferences.

During the mid 1990s, as a high school student in the United Arab Emirates, a group of classmates from the International School of Choueifat Sharjah in the science stream asked me (an arts student) if I wanted to participate in an advertising competition with a chance to win a free trip to Paris, France. Without much thought, I literally jumped at the idea. We were a group of expatriate children from India, Korea, Iran and Lebanon with aspirations of international travel who responded to an international competition, prior to the days of the fast-moving Internet world of today. The award-winning photos below, enabled 3 team members in the advertising competition to visit Paris, France.

More than 20 years later, one of the biggest challenges in the sport for development and peace movement has been to monetize or generate significant revenue from program activities to ensure financial sustainability. Different international development actors are motivated by either profits, donations or funding from government agencies which are affected by macro and microeconomic conditions. In my humble opinion, when there are competitions, tournaments and conferences to benefit the sport for development and peace sector, perhaps donor organizations enable the travel of the subjects or deserving person(s) in the photo(s) so that there is more direct interaction between donor and recipients to further the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

In the spirit of suggestions and solutions, a variety of settings come to mind for donors and recipients to interact directly. For example, a meet and greet with staff at the headquarters of a multinational sporting goods company, a lecture series at local university or a town hall meeting with the general public are just a sample of how the subjects of photos in the sport for development and peace sector can directly improve their social and economic prospects. This can be done once a year or once every four years depending on budgets of donor organizations. Given the tweeting and clicking of today’s world of short attention spans, photography is becoming a means to advertise, advocate and generate revenues.

Thanks to my uncle, Tawheed Hazarika, one of my local volunteering stints was with the Andover Village Improvement Society (AVIS). This enabled me to discover the conservation efforts in the Town of Andover, Massachusetts while improving upon my prior knowledge of conversation when gorilla tracking in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Park. The gorillas are amazing creatures, but given the distance, I could not replicate my African safari so my AVIS volunteer opportunity was the next best thing. I learned about the various trails, vegetation and waterways closer to home. Goldsmith Woodlands, one of the trails led to the sign post below. Since discovering this trail, I have taken many refreshing walks along AVIS trails in the vicinity.

When reading this sign I questioned my wanderings across Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. As mentioned, I realize I am very fortunate to have studied, lived and worked in many countries, which I believe, are now part of my DNA. It is sort of fitting that I found this sign in Andover, MA which has been a wonderful base to explore the world after my undergraduate graduation. My understanding and reading of this sign is that it is an indication for me to make a new beginning. Every ending means a new beginning.

The United Nations Office of Sport for Development and Peace has aligned itself with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to be met by 2030. Therefore, it is time for me to take stock of all my blogging and lessons learned to apply myself in a real, self-motivated and practical position. I have a keen sense of the what I’d like to do, but the where and when remains to be seen. I’ve been writing this blog for 8 years which is the equivalent of 2 Presidential terms in the United States with a blog posting, approximately once a month. My hope is that it can be a basis for publishing a book or memoir in the future. Gracias, Merci, Weebale, Efcharisto and Thank you for watching and reading! Bon voyage!

I recently traveled to Greece to expand upon my educational horizon and to deepen my understanding of the field of sport for development and peace. Before flying to Athens I conducted basic desk research with guidebooks and on the internet while consulting a few friends who had prior travel experience in the country. Ancient Greek civilization was not something that was taught in international schools back in the 1980s and 1990s in the Middle East but upon completing my undergraduate government major at Bowdoin College, I had briefly studied the work of Aristotle, Plato and Thucididyes. Of course, traveling to Greece more than 15 years later after graduation meant taking my appreciation for the people, place and culture to another level.

For 3-days, I was a tour group member of Classical Greece that made stops in Athens, Mycenae, Epidaurus, Olympia, and Delphi. The sites that were of most interest to me were Athens and Ancient Olympia. At every stop and corner there was evidence of historical significance. Learning about the details of all the players and events in the Classical Greece period could make for pursuing another educational degree altogether. This is not something that I am interested in doing at the moment, but believe that traveling is one of the greatest educational gifts one can make for oneself. Visiting the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens was moving because in a way it was a pilgrimage for paying homage to my playing and coaching days while helping to find my place in the world.

Visiting Ancient Olympia was of even more significance at it is where the Olympic flame for the Olympic Games are lit. I missed watching the ceremony in Ancient Olympia but was able to tour the grounds and see up close the ruins of this UNESCO Heritage Site. The Greeks had incredible foresight to have built such facilities thousands of years ago, but perhaps could do more to restore or renovate them to preserve such attractions today. Like other members of the tour group, I questioned myself. Why did I travel so far to see ruins and rubbles of dirt? As mentioned my approach was from the standpoint of (a) deepening my own understanding of sport for development and peace (b) being a symbolic advocate for squash in the Olympic movement and (c) being a part of something greater than myself and sharing with interesting travelers along the way.

Through my travels and formal education, I have been influenced by several mentors and teachers which led to taking such a journey. I would like to acknowledge their influence as for doing so would provide greater context for my trip. Thomas Hodgson, former Philosophy instructor at Phillips Academy Andover, Denis Corish, former Philosophy professor at Bowdoin College, Alexis Lyras, Founder and Director of Olympus for Humanity Alliance, and Popy Dimoulas-Graham of Charity Republic, Inc. I am grateful to have been able to take the time to make such a trip and explore a new region of the world for myself and advocate for squash’s inclusion in the Modern Olympic Games.

Since this blog has the word “explorations” in its title, I find it compelling to share my experiences from the vantage point of the 2017 United Nations International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. I’ve been fortunate to travel to several countries both as a child and adult which prompted me to self-reflect upon my tour of Spain in the spring of 2017. This does not make me a special person, but a traveler in life on this planet we call earth.

The slideshow above shows the magnificent architecture and beautiful countryside of Madrid, the capital city as well as Southern Spain. It is a country rich with culture and history, whose people are warm and friendly. Despite being a non-Spanish speaker and largely thanks to fellow travelers on my tour, I was able to navigate around Madrid and various Southern cities. My trip was a vacation, but I turned it into a project through my work in psychotherapy and volunteerism. I am not a trained therapist nor am I a certified peer specialist, but over the course of my adult years, I have gained increasing exposure to the world of mental health services.

I’ve enjoyed travel through my work and have learned that in many ways it is similar to coaching. It is worthwhile, to focus on the “process” so that the results will show for themselves. Perhaps, one of the reasons why I made the slideshow was to acknowledge and give importance to the challenges of travelers with mental health considerations. Particularly solo-travelers as the issues of navigation, housing, meals and medication adherence may be difficult without a relative or friend to assist.

Explorations are not only for explorers to visit or live in distance lands, but they can also be in one’s own backyard, town, city, state or country. As long as I am able to travel, there will always be something to write and reflect on which leads me to believe that perhaps my dream job would be as a travel writer or blogger.

This month is the death anniversary of Ataur Rahman, my grandfather (on my father’s side) who led a full life and left a tough act to follow. I have referenced in earlier blog posts how both my grandfather and father were football (soccer) enthusiasts in their younger days. My grandfather worked in the public sector all of his professional life and one of his many roles was as the Inspector General of Police.

Based off the accounts of family members, he was a senior police officer who enjoyed organizing sports events for fellow police officers and was asked to present prizes. This was an effective community building tool as it helped foster friendships among officers and their families as well as improve the morale of officers striving to uphold the rule of law in the state.

Ataur Rahman (my grandfather) in center back with dignitaries and police soccer teams.

I was not born when many of these happenings occurred, but do remember his later years as a Member of Parliament and then as a retired public official. While he was passionate about his work, his family life was just as important if not more. We miss him dearly and know that he is in a better place.

I recently returned from a 2 week tour of Southern Peru with stops in tourist destinations such as Cusco and Machu Picchu as well as the Sacred Valley. This was my first visit to a South American country and I chose Peru for a number of reasons. First, old friends and colleagues inspired me to visit, second, I was fascinated by Machu Picchu and third, I wanted to use up my vacation time wisely. Hiking up to Machu Picchu has always intrigued me.

Machu Picchu, Peru – a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

There were several highlights from my stay in Peru, but I would like to focus on the most striking issues relevant to sport for development and peace, that I was fortunate to witness. Throughout my travels in Asia and Africa, I have had little experience interacting with indigenous people, but while in Puno, Peru a visit to Lake Titicaca‘s Uros island gave me a glimpse of the impact of modern life (including sport and recreation) on the Uros people.

Uros people on Lake Titicaca, Peru Photo credit: Tour company, 2017.

Traveling with a group of Western tourists, we were taken by boat from Puno to Lake Titicaca where we visited Uros island. When we arrived on the island we were greeted by a warm elderly woman dressed in bright, traditional attire who guided us to a semi-circular seating area. After being seated on reed benches, she gave us an overview of life on the island of Uros and its culture with the aide of a translator.

Interestingly, the island itself is made of reeds which are grown and stacked to produced a floating surface which is finally completed by playing sports, such as soccer and basketball to make the “ground” compact. This gives a whole new meaning to the concept of turf, especially in a remote region of the world. The Uros are connected to the modern world by modern communication and transportation systems, yet they retain their culture and way of life with a touch of sport.